Pay to Hare an Incubator.
Six years ago we purchased a 100
egg iucubator and every season It has
been set five or six times and have
never had one failure nor one bad
hatch. The hatches are always In the
nineties with the exception of once
when we only got seventy-eight chicks,
Our hatches are about the same each
time each season through. We nearly
always have from ninety-two to ninety
six chicks, seldom lower than ninety
three, more often higher than that, and
always such strong, lively chicks, al
most never a cripple among them
seldom one In 500. Our Incubator has
not had the advantage of being kept
In a cave or cellar, but we have done
so well with It that we have purchased
another of 120 and one of 240-egg ca
pacity, as we are going Into the bust
ness more extensively.
We can truthfully say that the in
cubator is a great time and labor saver
and a money maker. It Is one of the
best investments any fanner or any
one who raises poultry can make. Who
would care to go back to the slow way
of raising chicks with the sitting hen
when It can be done with the incuba
tor so easily and so well? With the
hen the season of hatching is soon
over with, while with the lncubatvr
the early fries for market can be sold
when the market prices are best and
the early pullets hatched that will be
wanted for fall and winter layers. We
do not have to wait on the sitting hen
to hatch out a few chickens when we
have the Incubator to hated them by
the dozens.
A good Incubator will pay for it
self over and over the first season of
its use. It Is Indispensable in the poul
try business. To all those who con
template purchasing I would say, don't
get one that Is too cheap. (Jet a good
one, even if you do have to pay more.
h J;
exercising a Boll.
The accompanying cut furnishes an
excellent plan for exercising a bull. A
large, strong post is sunk into tho
ground and securely set. On top of
this post is placed an iron plate some
what similar to that used on the bol
ster of a sleigh or wagon through
which the king bolt passes. A long
sweep, evenly balanced, is placed upon
the top of this post and pinned by
means of a long rod, or, as we might
say, king bolt The sweep is necessarily
large at one end and small at the
other, which makes It possible to bal
ance with one end comparatively short
and the other long. The bull is tied
to the rope attached to the further
end of the long arm, and hi that way
can have a large circle to move in.
TJie supporting post should be above
the ground high enough to carry the
FOB KXKKC ISINO THE BULL.
sweep above tho bull. For a time the
bull may attempt to free himself, but
if the post and sweep are made prop
erly and securely there will be no dan
ger and he will soon settle down to
exercising In a much better manner.
The Value of Tile Draining.
Tile properly placed makes soil
dryer In wet weather and more moist
in dry weather. This is difficult to
understand until we consider the na
ture of the soil.
Soil In proper condition is porous,
something after the manner of a
sponge. It will hold water up to a
certain point without leaking. Until it
becomes thoroughly saturated, it con
tains air as well as water. Air is
warm and air Is needed by plants in
the process of growth.
Tile leads the water away quickly
In the spring so the air can penetrate
the soil and warm It so seeds will
germinate and grow quickly. Un-
drained land, If low, fills with water
In the spring to the saturation point
and the excess of moisture passes off in
vapor through the process of evapora
tion. It requires a great deal of heat
to warm the water sufficiently to cause
It to pass off In this way. That heat is
ost.
After evaporation has dissipated the
moisture and the soli becomes dry
nough to work it breaks up In clods,
because It has baked down and packed
together like mortar. It Is almost im
possible to prepare a good seed bed In
such ground. Agricultural Kpitomlst.
a MISNAMED EXHIBIT.
Bring Joy to the Mnnenm Visitor
and Worries the Curator.
A curator at the Metropolitan Mu
seum of Art is threatened with insan
lty, the cause being a small misnamed
exhibit in the gallery outside his office
door.
"Twenty times a day," declared the
harassed man, "people discover that
that china statuette out in the Frank
lin collection is named General Wash
ington instead of Benjamin Franklin
Then they burst in here and announce
their discovery and wonder tha: no
one ever noticed It before. Half my
time is spent in explaining that we
know It well, that it was simply a mis
take of the potter who labeled it in
France over a century ago, and that we
cannot change It nor wouldn't if we
could.
"Of course I tell them this courte
ously and patiently, and you know what
a strain that is when you are going
over the same thing for the thousandth
time! I'd latch the door, only there
are too many employes seeking me all
day long, so here I must sit and listen
to the names of George Washington
and Benjamin Franklin repeated a mil
lion times till I wish that neither of
those glorious patriots had ever lived,
And it's driving me insane, I tell you J
it's driving me insane!"
Just then the door opened and a lady
popped in with :
"There's a statue out here named
General Washington, but I'm sure '
And the weary curator, being a South
erner, rose smilingly to his task. New
York Times.
INCUMATOB AND BBOODER.
The good ones are the cheapest In the
long run. There are some incubators
that have to be watched closely to give
results, but these are the thin-walled
kind that will not hold even tempera
ture. Our Incubator floes not get any
watching after it Is once set going.
We leave for an all-day visit any time
even at hatching time and It lakes
care of Itself.
For the amount Invested an Incuba
tor will make more money than any
machine I know of. Mrs. I E. Brack.
Handling M nn lire. ,
It Is pertinent also to here refer to
the trial conducted by the Cornell
Agricultural Station to demonstrate
the losses to stable manure when ex
posed to leaching and weathering. A
pile of manure that contained elements
worth $5.48, after being rxpoHed for
live months wn m only $2.0,1. Lenv
..miiure In plies in the Held is an
antiquated method that should never
be practiced, for the reason that It
results In fertilizing the spots where
the heaps llo too heavily, giving them
fully three times as much of the fer
tilizing elements as they need, while
three times as much ground receives
less than it needs, or not enough to
make a showing. Where manure is
allowed to lie In heaps on a field for
a few weeks or a month, it Is an im
possibility to spread it so as to get
an even distribution of organic mat
ter and of the elements of fertility. It
is preferable to spread the manure di
rect from the wagon with a fork, al
though this Is by no means an up-to-date
way of handling it. For the most
economical results, immure should be
hauled direct from the barn as soou
as it is made and scattered over the
fields by means of a spreader. In this
way, and iu this way only, cau the full
value of manure be saved, provided, of
course, enough bedding is used In the
barn to nicely absorb all the liquid ex
crement, the plant food of which
amounts to nearly one-half of the total
in the manure and liquid excrement.
Country' Itnlnfnll.
The total rainfall of this country,
Including snow and that on water
areas, was given as 2iri,(XX),0O0,OOO,O00
cubic feet a year. Half or more Is
evaporated. About one-third flows into
the sea. The remaining one-sixth is
either consumed or absorbed. Of the
70,000,000,000,000 cubic feet flowing an
nually into the sea, less than 5 per
cent Is used for power. It Is estimated
that 85 to 05 per cent of the volume
Is wasted In freshets or destructive
floods. There are In the United States
proper 232 streams navigated for an
aggregate of 20,115 miles, and as much
more Is navigable by Improvement.
A Ilreed Worth Paying For.
The calf which an English farmer
had taken the summer resident to see
surveyed his owner and the stranger
with a weary eye. "What breed Is your
calf?" asked the visitor.
The farmer removed a wisp of straw
from his mouth and said:
"The critter's father gored a Justice
o' the peace, knocked a book canvasser
end over end and lifted a tramp over
a fence; and, as for his mother, she
chased a brass band out o' town last
New Year's day. If that ain't breed
enough to pay 25 shillings for, you can
leave him be. I'm not pressing him on
unybody."
A Very Cheap Gate.
A light, useful and durable gate can
be made of sassafras poles and barbed
wire as shown in the cut Set a strong
Coll AM) WIKE GATE.
post 4 feet iu the ground iu the middle
of the gateway and balance the gate
on It The lower rail Is made of two
forked sassafras poles securely nailed
together so as to work around the post.
W. H. Thompson, in Farm and Home.
When to I'laut Cherrie.
About tho best time to plant cherry
trees is In early fall or very early in
spring. It li better to plant in Octo
ber, tven before the leaves fall, strip
ping tha leaves off, than It is late, Just
before winter sets In. In fact, many
trees would do better than they do,
vert they set early, stripping their
leaves, not waltlug for the leaves to
fall.
,
Alcohol from FMt.
Alcohol Is obtained from peat by
treating the fiber with sulphuric acid
and fermenting with a special yeast A
ton of dry peat yields forty-three gal
lons of pure spirit at one fourth of the
cost of potato alcohol.
Separable Metal Barrel.
An economical retainer In which to
ship products &uih ns cement, lime and
plaster is described in Popular Me
chanics. Its halves are separable and
can be nested in a compact form for
the return Journey. The cost of the
barrel is about $1, which is a little
more than twice that of a wooden bar
rel, but they are claimed to be good
for at least fifteen round trips, and
the room they occupy when empty cut
down the shipping bill one-half.
Illnta for the Fanner.
Lime sweetens the soli as generous
deeds sweeten the soul.
Use the hatchet on the old rusty
cans. At least don't use them for milk
or cream.
Sow some peas and oats to help out
when hot weather comes- Then put In
some fodder corn planted thickly in the
rowt
Johnny The camel can go eight
days without water. Freddy So could
I if nm would let me. Harper's Ba
zar. "You have a fine house and piece of
ground here !" "Yep ! Made it all with
my pen." Writing?" "Nope; pig."
Judge.
The Colonel Confound it, sir; you
nearly lilt my wife! Jagson Did I?
Well, you have a shot at mine. The
Sketch.
"Judge, did you ever try an ab
sinthe frappe?" "No; but I've tried
a lot of fellows who have." Cleveland
Lender.
Ethel Jack simply raved over my
figure and my complexion. Maud
And is he still in the asylum? The
Clubwoman.
"She said she'd marry me if I felt
the same way a year from then." "Did
you?" "Yes, but toward another girl."
The Tatler.
"Why marry at all?" asks Lady Ar
thur Paget One reason Is that most
of the ladles Insist upon it. Chicago
Record-Herald.
"What broke up the suffragette pa
rade?" "A department store hung out
a sign announcing $2 silks at $1.99."
Birmingham Age-Herald. i
"I've had to give a great many wed
ding presents," declared he. "So have
I," responded she. "Suppose we marry
and get square with our friends?"
"If I were you I wouldn't be a fool,
Dlggs." "True," replied DIggs, com
placently. "The unfortunate part of
It Is that you are yourself." The Cir
cle. "My daughter's music," said the
proud, j ireut, "cost us a lot of money."
"Indeed!" rejoined the visitor. "Did
some neighbor sue you?" Chicago
News.
Barber (rather slowly) Beg pardon,
sir, but your hair is turning a bit gray.
Victim Shouldn't wonder. Look at the
time I've been here. Chicago Daily
News.
Club Doctor (with view to diagnosis)
And now, my man, what do you
drink? Patient (cheerfully) Oh er
well, doctor, I'll leave that to you.
Bystander.
Mrs. De Crimp (day after election In
1915) Where did you get the new
hat? Mrs. Toll Worker My husband
gave me $5 yesterday for my vote.
Brooklyn Life.
Mother And when he proposed, did
you tell him to see nie? Daughter
Yes, mamma; and he said he'd seen
you several times, but he wauted to
marry me Just the same. The Sphinx.
Redd Didn't I see you going along
In your automobile to-day? Greene
What time? Redd Four o'clock.
Greene Four o'clock? Oh, yes, we
were going then ! Yonkers Statesman.
He (rhapsodlcally) I adore every
thing that is grand and exquisite. I
love the peerless, the serene, the per
fect In life.. She (blushing coyly)
Oh,' George, how can I refuse you
when you put it so beautifully?
"How would you go about making
a layer cake?" asked the Inexperienced
wife. "I'd put the heavier layers on
the bottom," replied her husband, the
geometrician. "That is the way to
keep the center of gravity well within
the circumference of the base."
"When Clubber gets arguing he loses
all tact." "As for Instance?" -"Why,
las; night he told an oppoueut who Is
lame that he hadn't a leg to stand on ;
another who squints that he was sorry
he couldn't see things as he did; and
man who stammered he urged not to
hesitate In expressing an opiulou."
Btraj Stories.
'icass of omns pm
OIYWlSYAiBKf
OWA'S law authorizing the establishment of commission gov
ernment in cities of 25,000 or more population, which has been
very successful in Its first year of trial by Des Moines, accord
ing to reports from that city, was enacted by the Legislature
in the spring of 1907. Applying to eight cities by virtue of th
population clause, it was Instituted in Des Moines, a city of
75,000 inhabitants, soon after the Supreme Court of Iowa, in
February, 1908, upheld its constitutionality without a dissenting opinion, and
has become widely known as "the Des Moines plan." In Its general features
the plan provides for a method of city government that has been tried, with
good results, for several years in Houston and Galveston, Tex.
Instead of a mayor and a board of aldermen or councllmen, the "Des
Moines plan" makes the governing power of a city a commission consisting
of a mayor and four councllmen. Large powers are combined in the com
mission, which makes the local laws and executes them through a division
of authority whereby each member of the commission becomes the head of
a department These departments are as follows: Public affairs, accounts
and finances, public safety, Including fire and health; parks and public" prop
erty, public improvements.
The Iowa law may be adopted by any city within the State having suffi
cient population, which makes it eligible for eight cities. Cedar Itapids has
followed the example of Des Moines and has elected to try it. If 10 per
cent of the-voters of an eligible city petition for the purpose an election must
be held to decide whether tho city shall adopt the law. A majority of the
voters may adopt it or may drop It after trial. Initiative and referendum
provisions form an important part of the law. At the demand of 25 per cent
of the voters there must be a referendum on any action of the commission,
positive or negative, and the decision of the majority of voters at the refer
endum election is made binding on the mayor and councllmen. Atl ordi
nances granting franchises must be submitted to the voters for adoption or
rejection. Sessions of the commission must be public.
To Judge from the reports from Des Moines, the plan has been especially
effective In financial and police matters. For tha second year In its history, It
is said, tho city has lived within its Income, having a surplus of about
$20,000, instead of a deficit of $50,000 or more. The five members of the com
mission have been paid $3,000 each, wherens councllmen were formerly paid
$250 each, but it Is estimated that business methods of administration have
saved more than the $15,000 total cost of the commission. Every depart
ment of the government has been reorganized; sinecures have been abolished,
and it is even stated that "there are no more political Jobs." Streets have
been kept clean, better lighted at less cost, and paving contracts have been
carried out In the spirit and the letter of the contract Each commissioner
takes personal pride in his department and feels personal responsibility
for it
Heretofore, says Dr. L. O. Howard,
It has been supposed that the gipsy
moth was distributed only by caterpil
lars carried by moving objects, such
as carriages. The moths cannot fly,
and the part taken by birds and winds
in distributing them or the caterpillars
he regards as problematical. Yet re
cently isolated colonies of these moths
have been found in the woods far
from roads and paths, and the ques
tion arises, How did they get there?
Dr. Howard requests Information and
suggestions on this point
Recent excavation at the Maumbury
Rings Circle, in England, is regarded
as corroborating the tradition that a
Roman amphitheater once existed on
that site. A stratum of quartz, flint
and fragments of shells, such as the
Romans placed on the surface of the
arena where gladiators fought, has
been found there. A very Interesting
fact is that other remains indicate
that the place was used by Neolithic
people as a flint workshop. It is ap
parent that they used picks made of
deer's antlers to excavate the pit
where the flint was found. The pit is
80 feet deep. The place seems to have
been almost continuously occupied since
Neolithic times.
It Is known that the Christian era,
based on the birth of the Savior, is
older by several years than the time
assigned in the calendar; but the pre
cise year in which Christ was born has
never been finally determined. Lieu
tenant Colonel G. Maeklnlay has re
cently Investigated the question anew,
and has stated his conclusion in a
book, for which Sir W. M. Ramsay has
written a preface. The date on which
he fixes for the Nativity is 8 B. C.,
according to our present chronology.
He bnses his reasoning on the assumed
association of John the Baptist with
periodical "bright shtnlngs" of the
planet Venus, tho suggestion being
that these special apparitions of Ve
nus are the groundwork of the story
of the "Star of Bethlehem."
Prof. Todd, the astronomer of Am
herst College, who Is conducting ex
periments in South America, ascended
a mountain In the Andes to an alti
tude of 14,000 feet above sea level, and
there remained for one hour in a steel
tank of 270 cubic feet capacity, filled
with air compressed to the same ten
sion that air maintains at an altitude
of 1,000 feet. His pulse was reduced
from 104 to 91. His breathing and
physical -condition remained normal. A
decompression of the air to Its normal
tension at 14,000 feet was then made
In seventeeu minutes. The experiment
is looked upon as being important as
regards the treatment of diseases af
fected by various degrees of air pres
sure. Experiments heretofore conduct
ed In the Andes to see what effect
high altitude had on human life show,
says the Boston Transcript, that at
14,000 feet and over the air pressure
Is bo light as to produce incapacity for
work, prostration, and sometimes death.
At the level of the sea the air pres
sure Is approximately IB pounds to the
square Inch. At an altitude of 14,000
feet it Is approximately 9H pounds.
Experiments to determine the effects
of light on a number of dyed colors
were undertaken by Herr T. Frusher,
who exposed for a perod of forty days
samples of a number of color, with
the following results: Of the natural
coloring matters, camwood, the fastest
of the red woods, and fustic, the fast
est of the -yellow woods, both fade a
little; logwood in pale shades is con
siderably decolorized, the destruction
of color not being so apparent in dark
shades; logwood blacks finished with
chrome turn greener than unfinished
blacks; vat-dyed indigo gives the fast
est of all blue colors. Among the ar
tificial coloring matters tested, alizarin
blue antracene brown, in pale shades,
are only moderately fast, gallocyanln
Is not quite so fast as alizarin blue;
napthoj black, diamond black, anthra
cite black and other wood 'substantive
azo blacks are much faster to light
than logwood black.
LONG PELT WANT.
A Plea for a Graduated Standard o.
Mlaconduct.
What is really wanted at the present
time is a standard of misconduct. We
are constantly doing things in doubt,
as if we hadn't a right to do them.
The confusion caused by people do
ing things which In their circumstances
we had no right to expert Is the prin
cipal cause- of our troubles. It ought
to be definitely settled, for example,
that any millionaire who has, say, over
a hundred millions will thereafter lead
an honest life. If he has only fifty
millions his life should be semi-honest,
and if he has only a paltry ten millions
then it ought to be conceded that he
can loot a few railroads or so until he
gets on his feet
Up to, say, ten thousand n year no
man can afford to be dishonest Ha
ought to get up In the cars and give
his seat to women undr 35 at leust,
and of course he will not take the
chance of robbing any safe. From ten
thousand up to a hundred thousand he
can engage in little dishonest fliers by
making one of a pool or putting through
a land deal or so for variety.
When he gets fifty millions or more
together, however, every man ought to
ask himself plainly the question wheth
er from now on he ought not to be a
philanthropist Doesn't he owe this to
his fellow men? Life.
A BEILLIANT GERMAN IDEA.
Prof. Eugeu Bormel, the Berlin
sculptor, suggests that houses In earth
quake regions be built of steel and riv
eted to a rocking steel foundation.
This would give the houses an agree
able motion that would make an earth
quake a pleasure. If the motion be
came too violent, probably the furni
ture could be riveted to the floor and
the people lashed to the chairs.
HI Waterloo.
The Friend Your husband
funniest man I ever heard
Is
on
the
the
vauaeviue stage. He amuses every
body, doesn't he?'
The Wife He does not He can't
amuse the baby for five minutes.
Cleveland Leader.
The more pigeonholes in a man's
desk, the harder it is for him to find
what he Is looking for.
WHO USES SNUFF NO WAD ATS P
Chewing and "Robbing" Largely
Practiced In the Mill Town.
Year by year with never a set-back,
the American Snuff Company has
steadily increased its business, its divi
dends and its surplus, while the un
initiated continue to ask, Who uses
snuff nowadays? The company's an
nual report for the fiscal " year ended
Dec. 31, 1908, shows net earnings of
$3,474,318 compared with $2,170,585 for
1907; a net balance applicable to divi
dends on common stock of $2,154,818,
a surplus for the year of $1,214,080
and a profit and loss surplus of $56,
888,310. After paying dividends on
the preferred stock at the regular rate
of 6 per cent, quarterly dividends at
varying rates each quarter, amounting
to 14 per cent for the year, were paid
on the common stock, says the New
York Commercial. A 5 per cent quar
terly dividend has been declared on
the common stock payable April 1 - to
stockholders of record March 13. This
puts it on a 20 per cent basis. .
The American Snuff Company was
formed in 1900 to take over the snuff
properties of the American Tobacco
Company, the Continental Tobacco
Company, ond some smaller allied con
cerns. It has outstanding $12,000,000
of preferred stock and $11,001,700 com
mon stock, with assets valued conser
vatively at $31,341,642.
An official of a prominent Boston
wholesale house which distributes the
products of the American Snuff Com
pany through New England yesterday
explained the mystery of what be
comes of all the snuff in these days
when the habit of taking snuff is gen
erally supposed to have died out He
said that snuff is no longer snuffed to
any considerable extent; but the habit
of chewing or "rubbing" snuff has been
Introduced into the mill towns through
out all the Eastern" States. The
strength of the position, from a busi
ness standpoint, lies m the fact that
the women in the jnills are as much
addicted to the practice as the men.
This man, who is an expert in the to
bacco trade, attributes the introduction
of the snuff-chewing habit to the
Swedes, and he says that the Ameri
can Snuff Company has found It neces
sary to manufacture special brands of
the class of goods made in Sweden to
satisfy this demand. He says that
very little snuff is snuffed in the olr
way.
ON AN OCEAN LINER.
it uuhh i I'ny iu l ei iiangmy wim
the Stenarda.
"Never, oh, never, speak harsh words
of rebuke to a steward on an ocean
liner," declared a Congressman of New
York.
"One summer I Journeyed over to
the other side. The first day out at
meal time, I found that I had to em
brace the table leg to get near enough
to operate with my knife and fork.
For my unpleasant seat I called the
steward to account. Most harsh was
my criticism. Then I told him I would
have my meals served thereafter In the
upper cabin.
"The next morning the cabin stew
ard told me of a better room, and that
I should get it immediately. It was
more costly and elaborately furnished
than the one I occupied with my trav
eling companion. Then, too, It was on
the main deck. I looked over the new
room and decided to change. I had my
luggage, with that of my friend, moved
below. When. my friend found the new
quarters he gasped with horror. 'Man
alive I' he said, 'this is the worst hole
on the ship. You and I are in for a
great big seasick.' We got every Jar
of the ship and good and seasick, too. "
"The day I landed the dining room
steward met me on the deck. 'Much
obliged for changing.' he said. 'It was
at my request that the cabin steward
got you to move. The gentleman ahead
of you in that cabin and who wanted
to move gave me $75 to fix the deal.
I thank you for what is a most glori
ous tip.'" Washington Post
Teddy's Friend In Africa.
"Say, ma, can I eat this horseshoe?"
"Yes, ray child, but be sure and "re
move the nails. I'm so afraid of ap
pendicitis." He Did It.
"I refused Jim and he swore he'd
do something deseperate."
. "Goodness f Why, he proposed to me
jesterday."
"The dear boy : Co-fc kept his word,
after all." Cleveland Leader. " '
Aa Inclination.
The daughter of her mother was do
ing a stunt at the piano.
"My daughter's music." said the
proud parent, "cost us a lot of money."
"Indeed !" rejoined the visitor. "Did
some neighbor sue you ?"--Boston Post
About all the future some people
have left is longing for 6prlng when
It is winter, and longing for summer
when it Is spring.
A good many people believe that to
know a lot of contemptible gossipy la
to be wise.